Preferential Treatment and Status for Foreigners in China

On Youku & QQ:

Foreigners’ “Super-National” Treatment/Status

Beijing has two types of “lao wai“. One type are the wai di ren that come from various parts of our motherland, numbering 8 million. The other type are the wai guo ren who come from various parts of the world, numbering about 200,000. Chinese have always been hospitable, naturally treating “lao wai” with the utmost of care and consideration. In Beijing, they enjoy “super-national treatment/status” [preferential treatment and status above those of local citizens]. The only thing is, when it comes to “wai guo ren” and “wai di ren“, although there is just one Chinese character of difference, there’s quite a bit of difference in how they are treated.

Transcript of the above video (or view our English subtitled copy on YouTube):

老外 lao wai, short for people from elsewhere. This is then split into “外国人” wai guo ren [people from another country, foreigner] and “外地人” wai di ren [people from another part of the country, from out of town, outsider, non-local, migrant]. Both surnamed “外”, but one in the hearts of the people are elite, magnanimous, and high-class, whereas the other kind are often ridiculed: “You’re a country bumpkin!”

In Beijing, there are up to seven million “laowai” who have come from various parts of the motherland. There are about 200,000 laowai from various parts of the world.

China, as a country of etiquette since ancient times, is of course all about showing great consideration and hospitality when it comes to its treatment of its international friends! A foreigner who comes to Beijing to work and live can enjoy this series of super-national treatment [preferential treatment above the country’s own citizens] —— Home purchases, tax cuts, gaokao college entrance examination, education, multiple children.

Whereas wai di ren, *cough cough*, as one of our own, let’s just not quibble over some self-sacrifice, okay?

So, what exactly is the difference with the difference in one Chinese character between 外国人and 外地人?

Firstly, house.

If wai di ren want to buy a house in Beijing, you have to pay five years of social insurance or have proof of having paid five years of individual taxes before you qualify to buy a home in this center of the universe.

If you happen to have had a break in the middle where you changed jobs and didn’t work for two months, or if your employer unfortunately also happens to be non-local, congratulations, you’ve won the lottery, make another five-year plan [of working for a local Beijing employer paying social insurance/individual taxes to Beijing].

However, it’s much easier for foreigners. You only have to work one year in Beijing, then you can buy a home, sell it, buy, sell, buy, sell, buy, sell~~~~ “I love China!”

Secondly, taxes.

One can never get away from paying taxes living in this world. Working in Beijing, any citizen who earns more than 3,500 yuan per month has to pay taxes. Whereas foreigners… due to [government] worries that high prices may result in them unable to get enough to eat or have enough to wear, only if they make more than 4800 yuan do they need to pay taxes.

If foreigners want to start a business in China, there are even more preferential treatment and happiness. Not only can you register [a company] smoothly, what is even more important is: 1. No taxes for the first and second year! 2. Half income tax for the third to fifth year! 3. Continued tax cuts after the fifth year (for some foreign enterprises)!

Thirdly, children.

As long as you’re a Chinese citizen, you better have less children and plant more trees. Whereas foreigners, you can have as many [children] as you want, you can even have enough to make a football/soccer team and it’s no problem.

Naturally, once you have children, they’ll need education. As long as you get a “Chinese green card” [long-term/permanent residency], foreigners can enjoy the same educational treatment that local people’s children get. As for the children of wai di ren, schooling in Beijing? Taking the gaokao college entrance examination in Beijing? Impossible!

Previously there was a report of a wai di child who lived in Beijing with his wai di father, but in his senior year of high school discovered that he could not take the gaokao college entrance examination. So, he could only go to his mother who was far away in America, and after getting an American green card, everything was immediately solved.

“Teacher! This is my proof of admissions to the test, a green card.”

“No problem! The gaokao welcomes you, and 10 points extra [bonus to final score]!”

Though this was fake news, as long as a foreigner has [long-term residency in China], you indeed can participate in the gaokao in Beijing. Once in university, a high-end, luxurious, high-class foreign students dormitory is immediately available for you to move in. With air conditioning, dear!

Wai di ren can only be jealous, envious, and hateful!

You see, in order to let foreigners blend into Beijing better, we truly bend over backwards and do everything we can. “Being a foreigner is quite nice.”

As for wai di ren, we might as well talk about the problem of achieving world peace.

However, what if “laowai” don’t want to live in Beijing anymore?

The haze [pollution] that lasted half a year made many foreigners consider returning to the embrace of their motherlands.

Whereas wai di ren…

“Darling, I wanna go home…”

“Fuck you! You are only allowed to come back after you’ve paid off the mortgage!”

“What is this? We’re all “lao wai”, but why is our treatment so different?”

Because Confucius once said, “Is it not delightful to have friends come from afar!” It’s just that the further they are from, the more delightful it is!

Comments from QQ:

色空:

In many of our countrymen’s noses, even the fart of a foreigner is fragrant.

╰★缘份★╮:

Foreigners saying Chinese people are an inferior people is one thing, but even Chinese officials believe its own people are lower class people. Cowards, weakness from one’s bones.

小楼听风雨:

Their children are all in [foreigners’ countries], could they afford to not treat laowai better?

LED亮化照明 吴R:

Laowai loses a bike and we’ll help them find it, but when it’s a Chinese person? Fuck, you can beg and they won’t care, and just make a report of it. If you have a dispute with a foreigner or go to court, China will only severely punish Chinese people.

√ ▲丶尕 叶:

It is precisely because of this that people abroad look down upon us. You see how people look down on Chinese people who go abroad, sigh, I wonder what’s wrong with China. Such a sense of inferiority.

甜美的小世界づ:

I completely do not understand, really. Why does a portion of Chinese people so blindly worship the foreign…? Truly it is baffling. They’re humans and you’re human too. Where are you inferior to them? There truly are too many idiots.

Bernabéu.:

Abroad, the people who are most bullied are Chinese people. In China, the people who are most bullied are Chinese people. I better hurry and return to Mars.

高高在上:

Being friendly and hospitable is right, but don’t blindly worship the foreign.

长青树:

Our countrymen’s mentality of blindly worshiping the foreign was all manufactured by our lousy government officials!

江豚的微笑:

Actually the laowai who come to China have all been washed out from their own countries, yet we treat them as treasures, shouldn’t we really reflect on this???

梦盈:

When can Chinese people be of one mind, united when facing foreigners, and have backbone!

拍拍GG男装时尚官方店:

I’m only going to say one thing: Late-Qing Dynasty. Nothing else needs to be said.

骏马:

Why do Chinese people only know how to push around Chinese people! Speechless!

2012:

The laowai in my office, has violated traffic regulations over 100 times, had over 60 points deducted [from his license], stopped so many times, but the moment they see he’s a laowai, they let him go.

健康第一:

How can we call them “laowai“? So uncivilized. We should greet them with “Hello, Mister Superior Foreigner!” Now that’s the proper etiquette of the Heavenly Kingdom!!

准男人~橙之:

Actually, not entirely. I think the government doing this [having such policies] is due to legitimate reasons. The current situation is only temporary. Sooner or later there will come a day where our country will be strong and powerful, walking in front [at the top]. Perhaps it is because we attracted foreign investment and high-level people [foreign talent] that this happens.